LSU Football: Best Bowl Options for the Tigers

LSU head coach Les Miles can breathe a little easier than he did before Thanksgiving. 

Miles was under immense pressure to defeat Texas A&M on turkey day. He delivered with a 23-17 win. 

The Tigers not only won in an exciting game, but did so in style. The offense looked revived with 491 yards of total offense, 384 of which was on the ground. True freshman Leonard Fournette led the way with a career-high 149 yards and an emphatic touchdown run:

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Looks just like Herschel/Bates https://t.co/fZll6XfoeL RT @cjzero: Leonard Fournette runs OVER Howard Matthews https://t.co/zEMcOW9XFt

— Kipp Adams (@KippLAdams) November 28, 2014"

LSU's win makes them all the more appealing to bowl executives. The 8-4 Tigers must now wait for their fate next week.

LSU athletic director Joe Alleva joined 104.5/104.9 ESPN's Culotta & The Prince on Monday morning to discuss possible bowl destinations. Alleva mentioned that LSU will be in the "Group of Six" bowl games, which includes The TaxSlayer Bowl in Jacksonville, Florida, The AdvoCare V100 Texas Bowl in Houston, Texas, The Belk Bowl in Charlotte, North Carolina, The Franklin American Mortgage Music City Bowl in Nashville, Tennessee, The 56th AutoZone Liberty Bowl in Memphis, Tennessee and The Outback Bowl in Tampa, Florida.  

This bowl season will be the first time the SEC conference office will pick which bowl game the team goes to in the group of six, per Scott Rabalais of The Advocate. Schools will be allowed to rank its bowl preference, but the decision will ultimately be made by the SEC. 

104.5/104.9 ESPN's James Haralson included more important highlights from Alleva's interview:

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Joe Alleva on @1045espn's #MorningDrive: Bowl-eligible teams will submit lists of the bowls that they would prefer going to.

— James Haralson (@jamesharalson) December 1, 2014"

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Joe Alleva on @1045espn's #MorningDrive: Conference office is looking at good matchups, and proximity for #LSU fans - on bowl destination.

— James Haralson (@jamesharalson) December 1, 2014"

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Joe Alleva on @1045espn's #MorningDrive: The Belk Bowl "wouldn't make sense" for #LSU because of the distance to travel.

— James Haralson (@jamesharalson) December 1, 2014"

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Joe Alleva on @1045espn's #MorningDrive: "I would be very shocked if we ended up in Shreveport." (On the Independence bowl)

— James Haralson (@jamesharalson) December 1, 2014"

The most interesting comment Alleva made was about The Belk Bowl and its not ideal proximity. Pod Katt of AndTheValleyShook.com poked holes through that idea:

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Joe Alleva apparently doesn’t know how to use a map. The Belk Bowl at BoA Stadium is only about a 1/2 hour farther driving than Tampa was

— Pod Katt (@valleyshook) December 1, 2014"

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Realistically, only Houston and Memphis are "drivable" Bowl destinations anyway. You would fly to Tampa/Jax/Nash/Char

— Pod Katt (@valleyshook) December 1, 2014"

Katt is right. Only drives to Memphis and Houston are favorable. 

The Texas Bowl makes the most sense for LSU. The Tigers have alumni scattered throughout the east side of Texas, and Houston is the most favorable driving location, as it is only a four-hour drive from Baton Rouge. 

Jeff Howe of Horns247.com is reporting that Texas will likely play in the Texas Bowl. That means the Longhorns will play a team from the SEC.

Rumors are swirling of a possible matchup against old rival Texas A&M, but Chip Brown of Horns Digest said on 105.3 The Fan that the SEC will not allow it to happen. That opens the door for LSU. Jerry Palm of CBSSports.com believes the Tigers squaring off against the Longhorns will happen. 

Bob Levey/Getty Images

The problem, though, is LSU played its season opener against Wisconsin in Houston's NRG Stadium, where the Texas Bowl takes place. A repeat trip might not be ideal for fans who went there earlier this year. 

Rabalais sees LSU eventually going to The TaxSlayer Bowl. Expert college football prognosticator Phil Steele and SB Nation's Jason Kirk predict the Tigers will play West Virginia in the Liberty Bowl.  

Alleva's interview this morning should provide comfort to LSU fans. Though the Independence Bowl in Shreveport, Louisiana would provide an easier drive, the Tigers should never play in a bowl game of that caliber.

It is hard to predict where the Tigers will go. This season, it will be out of LSU and the fans' hands. 

Miles can only hope that the SEC league office in Birmingham is kind to him. 

Stats, rankings and additional information provided by cfbstats.com, ESPN.com and LSU Sports Information. Recruiting information provided by 247Sports.

Quotes were obtained firsthand unless otherwise noted. Follow me on Twitter @CarterthePower.